Facebook, HTC reportedly working on a new Android-powered phone

We've heard rumors of a "Facebook phone" on severaloccasions, but the closest we've come to those rumors becoming reality are the Facebook button-wielding HTC Salsa and Status. However, a new report suggests that Facebook and HTC have another unique device in the works. According to "sources familiar with the project" speaking with All Things D, Facebook has chosen to partner with HTC to create a phone that's currently codenamed "Buffy" and features deep integration with the 'Book. The device is reportedly running a heavily modified version of Android that will be integrated with Facebook services and support HTML5 as an app platform. Other details of the handset are light, but All Things D does note that Facebook opted to partner with HTC over Samsung on the hardware and that the product could still be as far as 12 to 18 months away from hitting the market.

Although folks will likely be torn on whether or not we need a specialized device like this mysterious "Buffy," especially considering that other mobile platforms already feature some integration with Facebook, it could be interesting to see what kinds of customizations Facebook can build into a heavily tweaked version of Android. Obviously we'll need to learn more about the device and how much it might cost when it launches, but I wouldn't be surprised if a good portion of Facebook's over 800 million active users would consider picking up a real "Facebook phone." What do you all think? Would you (or perhaps a Facebook-addicted friend) be interested in a Facebook handset running a heavily customized version of Android?

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